This post was originally published on February 12, 2011 and was updated recently with photos and updated text. We love this recipe and make it at least once a month…it's a tried and true & very tasty recipe, I know you'll love it!

Last week I shared with you this wonderful Whole Chicken in a Slow Cooker recipe and now I'm going to show you what I did the leftovers. I made chicken pot pie. And what better way to find a recipe than to tweet about it and see what other food bloggers say their favorite recipe is.

I actually put a call out to twitter asking about people's favorite chicken pot pie recipes.

I received a few replies including one from (my now dear friend) Lindsay. I love Lindsay and her blog so I went investigating. The recipe seemed relatively simple and the bulk of the work is the prepping of the ingredients.

The only problem was that I didn't have a whole set of ramekins nor do they match. But oh well, that didn't stop me. I had to go out and get two more ramekins and it ended up working out. The recipe she used is based on Chef Emeril's recipe for turkey pot pie but it was easily changeable to be a chicken pot pie.

After we had the slow cooker chicken recipe, I took the rest of the chicken left over and cut into smaller than bite size pieces and put into a plastic container – you need about 2 cups. This chicken pot pie was so amazing. It's going to be our regular after we make the slow cooker chicken recipe, always.

When I first made this recipe back in 2011, I had different size ramekins, some bigger than the ones I have bought since then. So depending on how many you have and the size, you might get the filling into a less number of ramekins or a larger number!

I pinch the pie dough against the sides of the ramekin and don't you like the little mini blossom flower cut outs? I use a similar to this one made by Wilton. Mine is also made by Wilton but it doesn't have the super convenient push tab to push out the shape. You want to cut a little vent hole whether it's with a knife or even another shape before baking.

This recipe takes a little bit of prep work but everyone I know who has made it, says it's worth it. Curtis and I love this recipe to pieces. Serve it with a salad and you have a complete dinner!

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Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 40 minutes minutes

Servings 1 9x9 pan or 7 to 12 ramekins

Ingredients

• 1 cup peeled and diced red potatoes
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 cup chopped yellow onions approx 2 small onions
• 1/2 cup chopped celery approx 1 celery stalk
• 6 Tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 cups canned low sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup half and half
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken white and dark meat
• 2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves optional
• 2 homemade or pre-made pie crusts room temperature

Instructions

• Turn on oven to preheat at 400 degrees F. If using a baking pan (such as a 9x9x2), grease it. Or if using ramekins, ready your ramekins (I generally use 7 to 12, all different sizes). Place baking pan or ramekins on a baking sheet covered in foil (the ramekins do not need to be greased).
• Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add diced potatoes and carrots and boil for about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• Melt butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add onions and celery as well as salt and pepper. Allow the onions and celery to for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Add flour and stir constantly for 3-4 minutes to make a blond roux.
• Add chicken broth while stirring constantly. Bring it to a boil then turn the heat down to medium-low. Allow it simmer until the sauce thickens, about 4 to 6 minutes.
• Add half and half while stirring. Allow filling mixture to cook for 4 minutes and stirring occasionally. Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Add the rest of the vegetables (potatoes, carrots, peas), the chicken and parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste and make sure all vegetables and chicken are incorporated well.
• If using a baking pan, line it with one of the rolled out pie crusts. Pour the filling into the prepared pan or divide equally into ramekins. If using a baking pan, cut vent holes and place the second crust on top of the filling.
• If using ramekins, roll out and cut out dough (I used the ramekins, flipped them upside and used them as a cutter) and cut out vents (I used a Wilton flower blossom cutter). Fill the ramekin with filling and then add the pie crust on top. Tuck in crust(s) into the pan or ramekins and pinch the edges against the sides of the ramekins.
• Place into oven on covered baking sheet. Bake until the crust is golden brown and crusty, 25 to 30 minutes (18-20 minutes if using ramekins). Let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Cook's Notes:

• Preparing the filling on the stove doesn't take that much time, the prepping of the ingredients does though. So it's very important to prep everything before you heat the pan on the stove!

I just adore this recipe for chicken pot pie and it's going on regular rotation in our house. It's one of the perfect comfort foods. So what do you like to make with your leftover chicken when making recipes like the slow cooker chicken, roast chicken or rotisserie chicken?

Disclosure: There's an affiliate link in this post.

The post Chicken Pot Pie appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

I was going to post a Meyer lemon bundt cake recipe a couple of weeks ago but to be honest, I hated the pictures I took. Yes, hate is a strong word but they weren't fit to share with you.

One of the original photos!

Update: It's so funny how I wanted to reshoot these before posting because I have been wanting to RESHOOT them again since I posted these in 2011. I'm including one of the original shots because I think it's cool to see where I was and where I am now, photography-wise.

I was waiting for a chance to make the cake again so I could retake photos. Then, this past weekend, I had this idea that I wanted to convert the recipe into mini Meyer lemon bundt cakes. We drove all over town this past Sunday to different stores until I finally found a mini bundt cake pan. (The whole time I was thinking, if I had thought of this before, I could have ordered a pan with my Amazon Prime account.) It's okay, I'm lucky that my husband loves to go hunting for stuff. He doesn't like shopping but he likes looking for stuff, if that makes any sense! He calls it the hunt.

This recipe is much better as mini cakes. I have to admit that I ate 6 cakes right after they came out of the oven. The Meyer lemons make these cakes so perfect. The sweet lemony flavor along with the buttery flavor, with a dust of powdered sugar these cakes are a little piece of heaven. They even remind me of Madeleine cookies too…hmm, I have a Madeleine pan that I need to break in.

If you have never cooked or baked with a Meyer lemon before, you're missing out.

It smells wonderful in the kitchen when you zest one. I get really excited when I see and smell the cake batter too.

The wonderful scent is unmistakable and unlike a regular lemon.

Seriously, love this recipe so much!

Add the yogurt and flour mixture in batches at the end and be careful not to overmix.

Place the batter into the cavity of the mini bundt cake pan.

Just having a little fun with the bundt cakes!

These are perfect as a light dessert or a quick snack. Just be careful…I know you will not be able to eat just one! I made these again tonight because I couldn't stop thinking about them.

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Mini Meyer Lemon Bundt Cakes

Meyer lemons have a wonderful taste and these light, buttery cakes are perfect with tea or as a light snack.

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 18 -20 mini cakes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teapoon baking soda
• 1/2 teapoon salt
• 1/2 cup 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons grated Meyer lemon zest plus 1/4 cup Meyer lemon juice (from about 3 Meyer lemons)
• 1/3 cup fat-free plain yogurt
• 1/2 teapoon vanilla extract
• powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup mini bundt cake pan with baking spray.
• In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
• Using a stand mixer with paddle attachment or large bowl and electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until fluffy and light, about 3-4 minutes. Add eggs and mix well. Add Meyer lemon zest and juice and mix well.
• Add 1/3 of the flour mixture along with half of the yogurt and mix, to combine. Repeat & combine (be careful not to overmix). Add the remaining flour mixture and mix, just to combine. As you're mixing, use a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom of the bowl. Add vanilla extract and mix.
• Using a medium or large cookie scoop, add 1 1/2 to 2 Tbsp to each bundt cake cavity. Tap pan gently on the counter to remove any air bubbles that may have accumulated.
• Bake 15-18 minutes until a toothpick inserted in several cakes comes out clean and cake edges are golden brown.
• Lay a sheet of parchment paper on a cooling rack and place on top of the mini bundt pan. Flip the pan over and remove the pan, leaving the cakes to cool on the parchment paper (on top of the cooling rack). Allow cakes to cool at least 15 minutes before dusting powdered sugar on top. Store in a sealed container for up to 3 days.

Notes

Inspired by and modified from Everyday Food‘s Tangerine Cake

The post Mini Meyer Lemon Bundt Cakes appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

This recipe was originally published in February 2011. I just updated the photos and added some recipe notes based on the many comments and questions I have received over the years. This recipe is a family favorite of ours and I hope you'll enjoy it if you try it!

My friend piqued my curiosity when she told me about her co-worker bringing in a slow cooker to work making crockpot whole chicken it for an entire day.

She often brought her crockpot in with some kind of concoction so she could bring dinner over to her friend's house who was going through chemotherapy treatment.

What a great friend, I'm sure her friend appreciated it. My friend told me their office often smelled really good during these days.

(Original photo this recipe was posted with in February 2011)

So when I was on the hunt for a chicken slow cooker recipe, I googled and found this one.

Why I love this recipe for Crockpot Whole Chicken

It's incredibly simple and the chicken goes into the crockpot in minutes. I added my own twist to it and guess what? The chicken is wonderfully moist and it's very simple.

After the chicken is done, you can put it in your broiler to crisp up the skin.

Carving the chicken is so easy because it just wants to fall apart. The breast comes right off the bone and is very easy to cut up. The chicken is really tender and flavorful and much easier than roasting a chicken in the oven.

I use a 3.5 to 4.5 pound chicken and it fits just fine in my slow cooker. I added the carrots and vegetables and the chicken rests nicely on them. Also, I added garlic and lemon.

My favorite roast chicken recipe calls for garlic and lemon inside the chicken so I do the same when I make it in the crockpot.

This makes a wonderfully easy meal you can serve with mashed potatoes or rice and your favorite vegetable alongside the carrots and celery if you wish. And  I make chicken pot pies with the leftover chicken.

Can I roast a chicken in a slow cooker?

Yes, you can totally cook a whole chicken in a crock pot. I use a 4 lb chicken in the crockpot. It's really easy to prep and honestly, I don't even bother roasting chicken in an oven anymore!

After the chicken is done in the slow cooker, I crispy the skin in my oven broiler so it's a slow cooker roast chicken with crispy skin!

If you want to roast a turkey as well, you can try this crockpot turkey recipe. If you still want to roast a chicken in the oven, try this recipe for perfect roast chicken.

How to Cook a Whole Chicken in a Slow Cooker

How to Cook a Whole Chicken in a Crock Pot

Using the ingredients listed below for my crockpot whole chicken recipe, you want to rub garlic on the outside of the chicken. Then, put the spices on the outside and inside of the chicken.

Add a cut up lemon inside the cavity of the chicken and then lay the chicken on top of the vegetables in the slow cooker. Cover the slow cooker.

Crockpot Whole Chicken Ingredients

• 4 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 4 to 5 carrots
• 4 celery stalks
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 whole lemon
• 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 pounds whole chicken

How long to cook chicken in a crock pot?

It will take four to eight hours on low to cook a whole chicken in a crock pot. It really depends on the size of your chicken. When I made a 4 pound chicken, it took about 6 hours.

Do I need to add water when making crockpot whole chicken?

There's no need to add water when making my recipe for slow cooker whole chicken because when the chicken is cooking in the crock pot, it creates a broth. Definitely use that broth to flavor the meat and keep it moist for when you save it for leftovers.

Can you cook a whole chicken in a slow cooker from frozen?

No, you shouldn't put a frozen chicken into a crock pot. If you want to use my recipe for crockpot whole chicken, you'll want to fully defrost the chicken first. But you can roast chicken from frozen.

Let me show you the step by step for making crockpot whole chicken

I put the vegetables in the slow cooker first. Then, prep the chicken.

Pat your chicken dry with a clean paper towel. Rub the outside of the chicken with garlic and place the garlic inside.

Fold the wings back below the chicken.

Add the rub to the outside and inside of the chicken. And place the lemon quarters inside.

I try to put the insides of the lemons up against the insides of the chicken, see how the outsides of the lemon quarters are touching?

Tie the chicken legs together with kitchen twine.

When making this slow cooker whole chicken recipe, place the chicken on top of the vegetables. This creates the best cooking situation for the chicken.

Cooking a whole chicken inside of the slow cooker creates a lot of broth and resting the chicken on top of veggies keeps the chicken from failing apart too much.

I use turkey lifters to remove the chicken from the crockpot carefully.

Place chicken in an oven safe dish or roasting pan & in the broiler for just about 4-5 minutes.

But it's inevitable, the chicken does fall apart a little bit. The meat is so moist and tender and it's honestly, the only way we make a roast chicken these days!

Crockpot Whole Chicken Video

I show you how easy it is to put the slow cooker whole chicken recipe together in this video below.

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Whole Chicken in a Slow Cooker Recipe

It's incredibly simple and the whole chicken goes into the crockpot in minutes.

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 8 hours hours

Total Time 8 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Servings 6 servings

Ingredients

Rub Ingredients for the Chicken

• 4 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

For the Crockpot

• 1 cup chopped onion approx 1 medium to large onion
• 4 to 5 carrots scrubbed, no need to peel, chopped in halves or thirds
• 4 celery stalks cut in thirds
• 2 garlic cloves peeled and smashed
• 1 whole lemon quartered
• 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 pounds whole chicken

Instructions

• Combine rub ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Prep the vegetables and place inside the slow cooker (I use a 7 quart oval one like this one.)
• Remove chicken from packaging and remove neck and pouch with organs. Discard or reserve for later use in another recipe. Pat your chicken dry with clean paper towels.
• Rub garlic all over outside of the chicken. Put garlic inside the chicken. Put the rub all over the outside and inside the chicken. Add quartered lemon to the inside of the chicken.
• Place chicken on top of the vegetables. Cover slow cooker and cook chicken on low for 4-8 hours. (When I used a 4 lb chicken, it took about 6 hours. The time will depend on the size of the chicken and your slow cooker.) Cook until the internal temperature of the leg is at 160 degrees F or use a pop-up thermometer as the original recipe calls for.
• Remove chicken and place in a 9x13 glass or ceramic baking dish. Place baking dish in the oven under the broiler for about 4-5 minutes. Allow chicken to rest after removing it from the broiler for 5-10 minutes.

Notes

Frequently asked questions:

Do I need to add water to the crockpot?
Nope no water needed. This recipe actually makes broth while it's cooking the chicken. You can strain it and use it for a later recipe if you want!

How do I get the skin crispy?
After it's done in the crockpot, see the instructions in the recipe to crisp up the skin in your oven broiler.

Can I cook this recipe skinless?
I have never tried it but I have seen other bloggers post a recipe where they did it. If you want to, definitely try it! I can't guarantee it will turn out the same as with the skin (moist and tender) since I haven't tried it myself.

Can I make this recipe with a frozen chicken?
I wouldn't do this. Be sure to thaw your chicken first and then place it in the your crockpot using the instructions above.

Modified and adapted from food.com.

I have made this recipe so many times now that I can't even count. It seriously is the best recipe for making slow cooker whole chicken! I can't believe it's taken me this long to blog about it. I even make chicken pot pies with the leftovers!

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More Crockpot Whole Chicken Recipes

Lemon Pepper Roast Chicken in a Slow Cooker

Other Slow Cooker Recipes

Crockpot Turkey
Buffalo Chicken Dip
Pulled Pork Sliders 
Slow Cooker Ham
Free Slow Cooker Recipes eBook 
Kale Soup Crock Pot
Crockpot Spinach Dip 

Tools I use to make Crockpot Whole Chicken:

• Crock-Pot 7 Quart Slow Cooker – We use our slow cooker at least a few times a month if not more. It's easy to use and I have had one that doesn't have bells and whistles forever and it works just fine.
• OXO Fat Separator – Super easy and super durable, get rid of the fat from the chicken juices so you can make a sauce or use it as a broth.
• Italian Bakers -I love these baking dishes for this recipe and for making scalloped potatoes!
• Turkey Lifters – I have a similar set I bought years ago that we use every Thanksgiving and every time I make this recipe. The best way to remove the entire chicken out of the slow cooker in one piece. (Amazon | Williams-Sonoma)
• Anchor Hocking glass baking dish – We have a cobalt blue one that we have had forever. It's great for this recipe, potatoes. You can never have too many baking dishes because of holiday baking!
• Carving Knives – We have had a similar set for years now and love it. Love this brand, we have cheese knives from them that are amazing too! (Amazon | Williams-Sonoma)
• Glass Prep Bowls – These were given as a gift to us from my in-laws and I use them EVERY DAY. So convenient for prepping meals and we use them as storage in the refrigerator too!

Disclosure: There are affiliate links in this post – that means if you click on the link and make a purchase, I make enough for a cup of coffee or two. Thanks!

The post Crockpot Whole Chicken appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

Chocolate chip cookies have to be my favorite cookie. Okay, I love almost all cookies but if I had to pick an all time favorite, it would be the chocolate chip cookie.

I have been on a long quest to find the perfect recipe and when Lindsay and I  decided to do the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap, I was trying to decide whether I would come up with a new recipe all together or try this recipe the New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies, a recipe adapted from Jacques Torres, that I keep hearing about. I'm so glad I did! It has an amazing flavor, as others have said, toffee tones and the perfect chewy consistency on the inside.

The cookie swap went from one tweet by Lindsay to open for sign ups within about 24 hours. I don't know how many I was hoping to register for the cookie swap, maybe 50, maybe 100? Once it kept growing, I don't think Lindsay and I ever anticipated it would grow to over 620 registrations. We have spent a lot of time emailing, emailing and answering emails but it has been all completely worth it. For the love cookies, it was worth it. I received 4 dozen cookies…how did I get 4? I was only supposed to get 3.

Early on, I told Curtis I have this awesome idea, I'm going to send Lindsay cookies too! I really thought I was completely clever. Little did I know that Lindsay had the same plan! It's too funny because we actually received each others' cookies on the same day. I also received cookies from Diane, Melissa and Lenore. They all tasted amazing.

If you're a food blogger and you missed out the cookie swap this year, there will be a cookie swap next year, as Lindsay says we're 99% sure there will be another one. Sign up here for notifications, we'll send you an email when details for next year come about.

I just love brown sugar, butter and egg together!

All ready to go in to the fridge for at least 24 hours. Yes it was really hard to wait that long!

Sprinkle sea salt on top before baking. I only bake one cookie sheet at a time. I do have multiple cookie sheets at the ready so that I always put cookie dough on a cooled cookie sheet and have the next one to go in when a cookie sheet comes out the oven.

I made two batches of this cookie recipe so I had some dough to freeze for later. When I'm ready, I just put the bag in the fridge to defrost and then pop them in the oven. I did date these bags before putting them in the freezer, it's important to identify what's in the bag and date them…we always seem to forget what we put in our freezer. Also, putting on instructions helps for when you want a quick dessert or snack.

My recipients received a dozen each and I have to comment on the box I chose for the cookie swap. It ended up being very similar to Lindsay's choice in boxes because it had four separate dividers to keep the cookies neat and separated. I swear we think so much alike!

Milk. Cookies. Milk. Cookies. I'm really tempted to say let's do another swap in February! It was really fun to receive boxes from other bloggers and EAT THEM! I was sad when my last box arrived.

But it was a lot of work and it wouldn't be special if we did it many times a year.

This week, both Lindsay and I are posting ALL of the posts from the cookie swap. Tons of cookie recipes…it's going to be epic.

Until next year…so tell me what's your favorite cookie? If you have a link, share it with me! I want to see.

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New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe I have ever tried. The instructions state that you should let the dough chill for 24 hours and you must do this!

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 14 minutes minutes

Servings 3 dozen

Ingredients

• 2 cups minus 2 Tbsp 8 1/2 oz cake flour
• 1 2/3 cup bread flour (8 1/2 oz)
• 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
• 2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
• 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar (10 oz)
• 1 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar (8 oz)
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tsp natural vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 pounds dark chocolate chips
• Sea salt

Instructions

• Using a sifter or strainer, sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a medium sized bowl. Put off to the side.
• Using a stand mixer fitted (with paddle attachment) or a hand mixer, cream butter and sugars together. About 5 minutes or until light colored. Add eggs, mix well. Add vanilla and mix well.
• Add dry ingredients in batches and mix until just combined, 10 to 20 seconds. Do not overmix. Add dark chocolate and mixing to incorporate, try not to break them and don't overmix.
• Transfer dough to another bowl or cover stand mixer bowl with plastic. Be sure to put plastic directly on dough to seal. Refrigerate for at least 24 hours before baking.
• After the dough has chilled, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Scoop 8-10 balls of dough using a 2 Tbsp cookie scoop and place onto a baking sheet. Be sure to leave at least 2 inches between each cookie dough scoop. Add sea salt lightly on top of each cookie and bake until golden brown, 13-15 minutes.
• Place sheet on a cooling rack for 5 minutes, then remove cookies and place on another cooling rack to allow the cookies to cool even more. Repeat with the other cookie sheet. If baking several batches, rotate cookie sheets so that cold dough is placed on a cool cookie sheet.

Notes

Slightly adapted from The New York Times, originally adapted from Jacques Torres.

The post New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

I had to resist opening the slow cooker every hour…the house smelled so good, it took all I could muster to not make a bowl before the 6 or 7 hours was up.

I put all of the veggies in the my crockpot first, then add the meat after it's browned. Next, the broth you simmered on the stove along with two bay leaves.

The result is a nice medley of tender beef, wonderfully flavored veggies and the broth is so flavorful with both beer and red wine. This is a winner and is going to make it into our regular rotation!

Do you have a slow cooker favorite or a favorite beef stew recipe?

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Irish Beef Stew (Slow Cooker) Recipe

A slow cooker beef stew that's easy to prepare. Full of flavor from the beef broth, red wine and Irish beer; the ultimate comfort food.

Prep Time 35 minutes minutes

Cook Time 9 hours hours

Total Time 9 hours hours 35 minutes minutes

Servings 4 -6

Ingredients

• 2 lbs russet potatoes peeled & cut into 1/2-inch pieces, approx. 2 cups
• 2 lbs baby red potatoes peeled & cut into 1/2-inch pieces, approx. 2 cups
• 4 stalks celery chopped, approx. 1 1/2 cups
• 4-5 carrots peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, approx. 2 cups
• 1 medium yellow or white onion roughly chopped
• 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 3/4 lbs stew beef cut into 1-inch pieces
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 2 Tbsp salted butter
• 2 cups low sodium beef broth
• 3/4 cup red wine
• 3/4 cup Guinness
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 Tbsp white sugar
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 Tbsp dried thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch + 1 Tbsp water
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Place the chopped vegetables into the crockpot. Rinse the meat and pat dry with paper towels. Salt and pepper the beef.
• In a large, heavy bottomed skillet, heat olive oil at medium to medium-high heat. Add beef to the pan and brown on all sides, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic and cook for one minute, do not burn the garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Remove the beef and add to the crockpot on top of the vegetables.
• Turn the skillet back up to medium heat. To the skillet, add butter until it's melted. Add beef broth, red wine, beer, tomato paste, sugar, soy sauce and thyme. Using a wooden spoon, stir the liquids as well as scrape the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil, allow to boil for at least two minutes. Then lower heat to low and allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add cornstarch and water and stir together.
• Pour broth mixture into the crockpot over vegetables and beef. Add bay leaves and cook on high for 4-6 hours or 6 to 9 hours on low.
• Skim the fat from the stew, if needed, before serving.

Cook's notes:

• You can buy a chuck roast or round cut (except top round). I actually looked this up on this site in the store on my iPhone. But then, I opted to buy stew beef already cut up by my grocer's meat department because I needed less than 2 pounds.

Notes

Recipe modified for the slow cooker from Crepes of Wrath.

Disclosure: There are a couple of affiliate links in this post. What does this mean? If you click on the link and make a purchase, I'll make enough to buy a cup of coffee…so thanks!

The post Irish Beef Stew (Slow Cooker) appeared first on The Little Kitchen.

I had a lot of fun making these drinks and well, ummm drinking them. I love mojitos so I thought I would do a twist on them with Meyer lemons. Check out the Cook's Notes in the recipe on how to make simple syrup. It's the perfect way to sweeten up the drink.

Meyer lemons aren't as tart as the regular lemons we're used to and they look more like oranges. They are also a little bigger than regular lemons. In the U.S., they will be in season until February…so get on it, what are you waiting for?

This is how we served them at the Duda Farm Fresh Foods booth and they seemed to go over very well. I told everyone to imagine they had rum in them! For the convention, I made them a mocktail with club soda. Please promise me you'll make them with your favorite citrus rum (only if you're over 21)!

I had some hiccups prepping and preparing food in the little kitchen (haha, get it) in the booth, hey it was my first time doing this sort of thing. Despite that, I had a blast. I got to meet a bunch of Duda employees, who are so warm and welcoming. They all made me feel like a part of the Duda family. On the left, that's Sammy Duda, me, Gwen and Lucy. The picture on the right is Chris, a journalist, Bill and Tim (thanks for helping me clean up the ice, Tim). Huge props to Nichole & Megan who are so awesome & nice to work with and to Ralph for shopping for all of the supplies and ingredients for my recipes.

Again, I can't thank the Duda folks enough for giving me this wonderful opportunity and allowing me to share my recipes with the Fresh Summit Fresh Experience Tour.

Thanks to Broderick of Savory Exposure for taking this picture. Look at me, I know I'm a total cheeseball.

By the way, Broderick had the coolest iPhone case, it looked like a cassette tape. It was great seeing him and all of the other food bloggers who participated in the Fresh Experience Tour. I also had a lot of fun catching up with Tami too. It was great to meet with some chefs even though it was intimidating to have them try my recipes as well as journalists who were on the tour.

I learned so much. I learned the Duda has sugar cane fields, I learned this from Mark while we were talking to a chef about Vietnamese shrimp paste that's cooked and served on sugar cane sticks. I knew this already but I felt it firsthand, how passionate Duda is and how passionate their employees are about sustainability and are about getting the best product out to market. And you gotta love that Duda Farm Fresh Foods has nothing to do with GMOs.

Back in the little kitchen…look at the pretty Meyer lemons. I used a juicer to squeeze all of those juices out. In the booth at the PMA Fresh Summit, I made a note to myself, when you want to juice 30 Meyer lemons, bring an electric juicer. My arms hurt the next day.

Cut up 1/4 of the rind to include in your drink. You can cut them even smaller if you want. You will be using this cut up rind to make your drink.

It's a really simple and refreshing drink to make…and really easy to make! I swear it will take you less than 10 minutes to make, okay 15 if you include making the simple syrup.

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Meyer Lemon Mojito

A different take on the classic mojito! Make it a mocktail by using club soda instead.

Servings 1 drink

Ingredients

• 1 Meyer Lemon squeezed (reserve the rind & cut up 1/4 of it)
• 3 mint leaves
• 1/2 to 1 1/2 Tbsp simple syrup
• 1/2 cup citrus rum or club soda
• club soda if using rum
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup ice

Instructions

• Place 1/4 of the cut up rind, 1/2 of the Meyer lemon juice, simple syrup and mint leaves into a tall glass cup. Using a mottler or small wooden spoon, mottle (or push down on) the mint leaves and Meyer lemon rinds a few times.
• Taste and add more simple syrup to taste if needed. Transfer to drinking or mojito glass along with the rest of the Meyer lemon juice. Add club soda and/or rum along with ice. Give one quick stir with a spoon or drink stirrer and serve immediately.

Cook's Notes:

• Mojitos usually have rum and club soda. You can leave out the club soda if you wish. If using, add as much or as little as you wish.
• To make simple syrup, add equal parts granulated sugar and water (at least 3/4 cup) to a small saucepan, bring to a boil for 1 to 2 minutes and lower heat to a simmer for 4-5 minutes. Allow simple syrup to cool completely before using in your drink. If you don't have time to make simple syrup, you can always mix equal parts sugar and warm water in a cup and mix until the sugar is completely dissolved.

I hope you enjoy it! Mojitos are my favorite cocktail and this one has definitely become a top favorite…so now, tell me what your favorite cocktail or mocktail is.

Disclosure:  This is a sponsored post. You all know that my opinions expressed on The Little Kitchen are always my own!

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